Oakland restaurateurs furious over increased compost pick-up costs

When Maria Alderete, co-owner of Luka’s Taproom & Lounge, e-mailed me to share her outrage over the $8,262 cost of compost pick-up, I thought she was referring to her total annual costs. I was way, way off. The $8,262 was how much more she’s paying this year than last year for compost.

The bar and restaurant’s monthly bill rose from $904 a month with a private firm to $1,592.55 under Oakland’s new contract with Waste Management, which kicked in on July 1.

The restaurant’s annual composting costs are now more than $19,000. Hold the aioli. Sticker shock from the city’s trash deal has left some Oakland restaurateurs flummoxed — and wondering how is it that composting fees have surpassed the costs of trash pick-up. Already, restaurant owners are mobilizing and preparing a response. The Oakland Indie Alliance, a coalition of 70 restaurants originally formed to support a minimum wage ordinance for their own workers, scheduled a press conference and rally for 5 p.m. Friday outside Oakland City Hall to demand changes in the city’s exclusive compost services contract with the company.